# What happened on May 1 in history?

**Date:** May 1  
**Events recorded:** 50  
**Years spanned:** 305 – 2026  
**Full page:** https://thisday.info/events/may/1/

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## Featured Event

**2024** — The 2024 Loblaw boycott, a Canadian boycott against retail corporation and grocer Loblaw Companies, begins.

[Read more on Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loblaw_Companies)

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## Events on this date

- **305** — Diocletian and Maximian retire from the office of Roman emperor. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diocletian))
- **418** — A synod in Carthage condemns Pelagianism. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Councils_of_Carthage))
- **880** — The Nea Ekklesia is inaugurated in Constantinople, setting the model for all later cross-in-square Orthodox churches. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nea_Ekklesia))
- **1169** — Norman mercenaries land at Bannow Bay in Leinster, marking the beginning of the Norman invasion of Ireland. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Normans))
- **1328** — Wars of Scottish Independence end: By the Treaty of Edinburgh–Northampton, England recognises Scotland as an independent state. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wars_of_Scottish_Independence))
- **1455** — Scottish Royal forces loyal to King James II defeat a rebel army of the Black Douglases in the battle of Arkinholm. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingdom_of_Scotland))
- **1486** — Christopher Columbus presents his plans for discovering a western route to the Indies to the Spanish Queen Isabella I of Castile. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christopher_Columbus))
- **1492** — The Edict of Expulsion is officially proclaimed in Castile, requiring all Jewish residents to leave within three months. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alhambra_Decree))
- **1669** — Henry Morgan's raid on Lake Maracaibo: the Spanish Armada de Barlovento is defeated by an English Privateer fleet led by Captain Henry Morgan. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Morgan's_raid_on_Lake_Maracaibo))
- **1707** — The Act of Union joining England and Scotland to form the Kingdom of Great Britain takes effect. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acts_of_Union_1707))
- **1753** — Publication of Species Plantarum by Linnaeus, and the formal start date of plant taxonomy adopted by the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_Linnaeus))
- **1807** — The Slave Trade Act 1807 takes effect, abolishing the slave trade within the British Empire. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slave_Trade_Act_1807))
- **1820** — Execution of the Cato Street Conspirators, who plotted to kill the British Cabinet and Prime Minister Lord Liverpool. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cato_Street_Conspiracy))
- **1840** — The Penny Black, the first official adhesive postage stamp, is issued in the United Kingdom. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penny_Black))
- **1844** — Hong Kong Police Force, the world's second modern police force and Asia's first, is established. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hong_Kong_Police_Force))
- **1846** — The few remaining Mormons left in Nauvoo, Illinois, formally dedicate the Nauvoo Temple. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mormons))
- **1851** — Queen Victoria opens The Great Exhibition at The Crystal Palace in London. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen_Victoria))
- **1863** — American Civil War: The Battle of Chancellorsville between Robert E. Lee's Confederate Army of Northern Virginia and the Union Army of the Potomac under Joseph Hooker begins. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Civil_War))
- **1863** — American Civil War: During the Vicksburg campaign, Union forces under Ulysses S. Grant win the Battle of Port Gibson and establish a firm presence on the east side of the Mississippi River. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vicksburg_campaign))
- **1865** — The Empire of Brazil, Argentina, and Uruguay sign the Treaty of the Triple Alliance. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Empire_of_Brazil))
- **1866** — The Memphis Race Riots begin. Over three days, 46 blacks and two whites were killed. Reports of the atrocities influenced passage of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memphis_massacre_of_1866))
- **1885** — The original Chicago Board of Trade Building opens for business. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago_Board_of_Trade_Building))
- **1886** — Rallies are held throughout the United States demanding the eight-hour work day, culminating in the Haymarket affair in Chicago, in commemoration of which May 1 is celebrated as International Workers' Day in many countries. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haymarket_affair))
- **1894** — Coxey's Army, the first significant American protest march, arrives in Washington, D.C. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coxey's_Army))
- **1896** — Naser al-Din, Shah of Iran, is assassinated in Shah Abdol-Azim Shrine by Mirza Reza Kermani, a follower of Jamal al-Din al-Afghani. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naser_al-Din_Shah_Qajar))
- **1898** — Spanish–American War: Battle of Manila Bay: The Asiatic Squadron of the United States Navy destroys the Pacific Squadron of the Spanish Navy after a seven-hour battle. Spain loses all seven of its ships, and 381 Spanish sailors die. There are no American vessel losses or combat deaths. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish%E2%80%93American_War))
- **1900** — The Scofield Mine disaster kills over 200 men in Scofield, Utah in what is to date the fifth-worst mining accident in United States history. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scofield_Mine_disaster))
- **1921** — The Jaffa riots begin. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaffa_riots_(May_1921)))
- **1929** — The 7.2 Mw  Kopet Dag earthquake shakes the Iran–Turkmenistan border region with a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent), killing up to 3,800 and injuring 1,121. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1929_Kopet_Dag_earthquake))
- **1945** — World War II: German radio broadcasts news of Adolf Hitler's death, falsely stating that he has "fallen at his command post in the Reich Chancellery fighting to the last breath against Bolshevism and for Germany". The Soviet flag is raised over the Reich Chancellery, by order of Stalin. Up to 2,500 people die in a mass suicide in Demmin following the advance of the Red Army. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_II))
- **1946** — Start of three-year Pilbara strike of Indigenous Australians. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pilbara_strike))
- **1947** — Portella della Ginestra massacre against May Day celebrations in Sicily by the bandit and separatist leader Salvatore Giuliano where 11 persons are killed and 33 wounded. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portella_della_Ginestra_massacre))
- **1957** — A Vickers VC.1 Viking crashes while attempting to return to Blackbushe Airport in Yateley, killing 34. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vickers_VC.1_Viking))
- **1960** — Cold War: U-2 incident: Francis Gary Powers, in a Lockheed U-2 spyplane, is shot down over the Sverdlovsk Oblast, Soviet Union, sparking a diplomatic crisis. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cold_War))
- **1970** — Vietnam War: Protests erupt in response to U.S. and South Vietnamese forces attacking Vietnamese communists in a Cambodian Campaign. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vietnam_War))
- **1982** — Operation Black Buck: The Royal Air Force attacks the Argentine Air Force during the Falklands War. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Black_Buck))
- **1991** — Angolan Civil War: The MPLA and UNITA agree to the Bicesse Accords, which are formally signed on May 31 in Lisbon. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angolan_Civil_War))
- **1993** — Sri Lankan President Ranasinghe Premadasa is assassinated in Colombo in a suicide bombing carried out by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/President_of_Sri_Lanka))
- **1994** — Three-time Formula One champion Ayrton Senna is killed in an accident during the San Marino Grand Prix. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Formula_One))
- **1997** — The Labour Party wins the 1997 General Election and Tony Blair is elected as Prime Minister. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1997_United_Kingdom_general_election))
- **2003** — Invasion of Iraq: In what becomes known as the "Mission Accomplished" speech, on board the USS Abraham Lincoln (off the coast of California), U.S. President George W. Bush declares that "major combat operations in Iraq have ended". ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003_invasion_of_Iraq))
- **2004** — Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia join the European Union, celebrated at the residence of the Irish President in Dublin. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyprus))
- **2009** — Same-sex marriage in Sweden is legalized. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Same-sex_marriage_in_Sweden))
- **2010** — Faisal Shahzad attempts to detonate a car bomb in Times Square, but the bomb fails to go off. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faisal_Shahzad))
- **2011** — Pope John Paul II is beatified by his successor, Pope Benedict XVI. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beatification_of_Pope_John_Paul_II))
- **2018** — Syrian civil war: The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) resumes the Deir ez-Zor campaign in order to clear the remnants of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) from the Iraq–Syria border. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syrian_civil_war))
- **2019** — Naxalite attack in Gadchiroli district of India: Sixteen army soldiers, including a driver, killed in an IED blast. Naxals targeted an anti-Naxal operations team. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naxalism))
- **2019** — Naruhito ascends to the throne of Japan succeeding his father Akihito, beginning the Reiwa period. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naruhito))
- **2024** — The 2024 Loblaw boycott, a Canadian boycott against retail corporation and grocer Loblaw Companies, begins. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loblaw_Companies))
- **2026** — After a ransomware attack by the group ShinyHunters, the education platform Canvas operated by private company Instructure, goes offline, affecting thousands of educational institutions. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_Canvas_data_breach))

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## Notable births on May 1

- **2006** — **Lewis Miley** — English footballer ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Miley))
- **2005** — **Linda Fruhvirtová** — Czech tennis player ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linda_Fruhvirtov%C3%A1))
- **2004** — **Charli D'Amelio** — American social media influencer and dancer ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charli_D'Amelio))
- **2003** — **Lizzy Greene** — American actress ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lizzy_Greene))
- **2002** — **Chet Holmgren** — American basketball player ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chet_Holmgren))
- **2000** — **Rema** — Nigerian singer-songwriter and rapper ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rema_(musician)))
- **1999** — **YNW Melly** — American rapper ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/YNW_Melly))
- **1999** — **Tiffany Stratton** — American wrestler ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiffany_Stratton))
- **1997** — **Miles Sanders** — American football player ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miles_Sanders))
- **1996** — **William Nylander** — Canadian-Swedish ice hockey player ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Nylander))

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## Notable deaths on May 1

- **2023** — **Gordon Lightfoot** — Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist (born 1938) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gordon_Lightfoot))
- **2021** — **Olympia Dukakis** — American actress (born 1931) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olympia_Dukakis))
- **2015** — **Geoff Duke** — English-Manx motorcycle racer (born 1923) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geoff_Duke))
- **2015** — **Vafa Guluzade** — Azerbaijani political scientist, academic, and diplomat (born 1940) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vafa_Guluzade))
- **2015** — **María Elena Velasco** — Mexican actress, singer, director, and screenwriter (born 1940) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mar%C3%ADa_Elena_Velasco))
- **2015** — **Grace Lee Whitney** — American actress (born 1930) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grace_Lee_Whitney))
- **2014** — **Adamu Atta** — Nigerian lawyer and politician, 5th Governor of Kwara State (born 1927) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adamu_Atta))
- **2014** — **Radhia Cousot** — French computer scientist and academic (born 1947) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radhia_Cousot))
- **2014** — **Assi Dayan** — Israeli actor, director, and screenwriter (born 1945) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assi_Dayan))
- **2014** — **Juan de Dios Castillo** — Mexican footballer and coach (born 1951) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juan_de_Dios_Castillo))

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## About this page

This is a machine-readable Markdown summary of [thisday.info/events/may/1/](https://thisday.info/events/may/1/).  
Historical data is sourced from [Wikipedia/Wikimedia](https://www.wikipedia.org) under [CC BY-SA](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/).  
Editorial framing and site content © thisday.info.